William H. Sullivan
Encyclopedia
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
) was an American Foreign Service career officer who served as Ambassador
Ambassadors from the United States
This is a list of ambassadors of the United States to individual nations of the world, to international organizations, to past nations, and ambassadors-at-large.Ambassadors are nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate...
to Laos
Foreign relations of Laos
The foreign relations of Laos, after the takeover by the Pathet Lao in December 1975, were characterized by a hostile posture toward the West, with the government of the Lao People's Democratic Republic aligning itself with the Soviet bloc, maintaining close ties with the Soviet Union and depending...
from 1964-1969, the Philippines
Foreign relations of the Philippines
The Foreign relations of the Philippines are administered by the President of the Philippines and the nation's Department of Foreign Affairs. A great deal of Filipino international affairs are influenced by the Philippines' ties to its Southeast Asian neighbors, United States, and the Middle...
from 1973-1977, and Iran
Foreign relations of Iran
Foreign relations of Iran refers to inter-governmental relationships between Iran and other countries. Following the 1979 Iranian Revolution, the newly-born Islamic Republic, under the leadership of Ayatollah Khomeini, dramatically reversed the pro-Western foreign policy of the last Shah of Iran,...
from 1977-1979.
As Ambassador to Laos, he had severe disagreements with the military over the secret war in that country. General William Westmoreland and other officers felt that Sullivan severely damaged the overall war effort. In the early 1970s, Sullivan participated in peace negotiations between the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and North Vietnam
North Vietnam
The Democratic Republic of Vietnam , was a communist state that ruled the northern half of Vietnam from 1954 until 1976 following the Geneva Conference and laid claim to all of Vietnam from 1945 to 1954 during the First Indochina War, during which they controlled pockets of territory throughout...
.
During Sullivan's tenure as Ambassador to Iran, he played an important role in communicating America's directives to Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
Mohammad Rezā Shāh Pahlavi, Shah of Iran, Shah of Persia , ruled Iran from 16 September 1941 until his overthrow by the Iranian Revolution on 11 February 1979...
, the second and last Pahlavi king. In the 1970s, America had unusually high military and economic links with Iran. However, in early 1978, growing unrest due to inflation
Inflation
In economics, inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time.When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation also reflects an erosion in the purchasing power of money – a...
and other economic hardships fueled by the growing tide of fundamentalist Islam led to demonstrations against the Shah. On February 1, 1979, the exiled Ayatollah Khomeini returned to Tehran and on April 1, 1979, Iran officially became an Islamic state.
Throughout the revolution in Iran
Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution refers to events involving the overthrow of Iran's monarchy under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and its replacement with an Islamic republic under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the...
, Sullivan served as chief Iranian diplomat and primary messenger between the administration of President Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
and the Shah. Sullivan felt strongly early on that America should abandon its support of the Shah and move to form an alliance with Khomeini. He wrote in his autography: "I had recommended that we accept the fact that a revolution was in progress and seek to use our not inconsiderable influence to steer its success toward its more moderate protagonists." This view, however, was not shared by Washington. As the revolution gained momentum, Sullivan became increasingly opposed to America's policy, becoming insolent and carrying out the President's directives half-heartedly or, in some instances, not at all. Carter later stated in an interview that Sullivan was "specifically insubordinate
Insubordination
Insubordination is the act of willfully disobeying an authority. Refusing to perform an action that is unethical or illegal is not insubordination; neither is refusing to perform an action that is not within the scope of authority of the person issuing the order.Insubordination is typically a...
" and that he should have fired Sullivan, but was dissuaded to do so by Secretary of State Cyrus Vance
Cyrus Vance
Cyrus Roberts Vance was an American lawyer and United States Secretary of State under President Jimmy Carter from 1977 to 1980...
. Sullivan was replaced in the spring of 1979 by Charge' d'Affaires Bruce Laingen
Bruce Laingen
Lowell Bruce Laingen was the senior American official held hostage during the Iran hostage crisis.-Biography:Laingen, born on a farm in southern Minnesota, graduated from St. Olaf College. He also studied at the National War College, and received a M.A. in International Relations from the...
, who later became one of 52 Americans held hostage by militant Iranian students.
In 1981, Sullivan published Mission to Iran, a memoir of his time as ambassador. His autobiography, Obbligato: Notes on a Foreign Service Career, was published in 1984.